de Borgen Malt Genever (40.0%): I am a big genever fan... It all started back when I was traveling to Antwerp frequently for business. I discovered Cafe de Vagant pretty much right away and started to spend most of my nights there choosing a different genever each time from their anomalous collection of nearly 300 bottles. Although it's not an easy task here in US I am still trying to taste as many as I can lay my hands on and De Borgen is one of the rare brands being imported. I reviewed their Old-Style Genever on the blog before which I liked a lot and this time I have their Cask Finished Malt Genever on the desk. The malt wine is distilled from a mash-bill containing corn, wheat and rye and then the spirit is infused with caraway and fennel seeds, angelica root, sweet woodruff and a combination of different juniper berries before being matured in ex-Oloroso casks.
Color: Polished copper, wildflower honey color with fast but thick and oily looking legs.
Nose: Very doughy... Brewer's yeast, toasted sourdough bread slices and caraway seeds. Cinnamon, butter and lime zest. It gets slightly greener after being aired for a while: Fresh cilantro, bitter beer hops and curly endives.
Palate: Creamy and doughy on the palate as well. Dark chocolate, wet malt before and salted caramel brittles. Candied orange peels, very young malt whisky and sweet tart crust. Orange blossom honey, maple syrup and more sourdough.
Finish: Medium long with ground ginger, ground coriander and butter. And hint of white pepper...
Overall: This is one of the best aged genevers I tasted in US... It's spicy, herbal and citrusy with balanced sweet and salty notes all supported with a buttery and doughy texture. It is great to accompany an afternoon espresso, would pair perfect with dairy desserts and ice-creams but It's also totally enjoyable to sip on its own.
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